Outside of binge-watching Law & Order, it’s safe to say many of us are not well-versed in legal jargon. You may be someone who knows the difference between a defendant and a plaintiff, but what about the difference between an NDA and an MDA?

Jessica Vittorio, managing attorney at The Law Office of Jessica Vittorio PLLC, is on a mission to empower the community with current, easy-to-understand legal information via her cleverly-named podcast, Sh*t Your Lawyer Says. The show releases new episodes each week and covers a variety of legal topics. If you’re a business owner or looking to start a new venture, you’ll want to check out this show. Season 1 wrapped back in May and a new season is releasing in the coming month so you have some time to catch up.

When asked what compelled her to start recording Sh*t Your Lawyer Says, Vittorio blatantly said, “Yeah, I didn’t give it much thought”. I was stunned a bit; wondering how she could be so nonchalant about the whole thing, but the more I spoke with Vittorio, the more I realized that this young woman is a quintessential risk taker who dives in head first. This mentality is one of the driving forces behind the career she has built for herself.

Vittorio is a born and bred Texan raised by two entrepreneurs who most certainly had an influence on her. She witnessed the fulfillment of owning your own company, but was also privy to the struggles that come along with that responsibility. Vittorio credits the lessons she learned through her parents’ careers as the motivation for her current career choice. But before she became a self-employed attorney focusing on small businesses and startups, Vittorio took a bit of an unconventional route to find her niche.

After graduating from college, Vittorio enrolled at Baylor Law School with the intent of becoming a criminal defense attorney *cue the Law & Order theme song*. But as soon as she realized that path was less “pantsuits and kicking ass”, and was actually more “settling out of court and reviewing history books”, Vittorio took a new direction. She left the comfort of her home state and moved to the epicenter of politics – Washington D.C.

Jessica Vittorio (pictured far right)

With connections to The Hill, Vittorio was quickly brought on as legislative counsel for a freshman member of the House. Vittorio gained an extremely valuable skillset working in the political area, but soon realized that world wasn’t for her. After a few years on The Hill, this Texas girl returned to her roots armed with a new motivation – advising startups.

Since landing back in Dallas, Vittorio has established herself as a “no bs” attorney. Instead of upholding an air of pretentiousness that many attorneys tend to portray, Vittorio is real and unapologetically herself. She attends startup events and is heavily involved in the Dallas community. It’s apparent how truly invested she is in early stage companies. If you are so inclined to meet her, you can find Vittorio hanging out at Capital Factory in Uptown or WeWork at Thanksgiving Tower.

Featured Episode

For months now, you’ve probably been receiving a massive influx of privacy policy and terms of use updates from virtually every company you’ve interacted with. But do you know why? The cause of these emails is the General Data Protection Regulation, or as I prefer to call it – Facebook’s never-ending nightmare.

The GDPR is shaking things up for a lot of companies because it’s enforcing some pretty strict rules about how they utilize the data received from e-commerce interactions. Huge deal. But many of us are kinda confused about what this regulation actually means and how it impacts our day-to-day. On this episode of Sh*t Your Lawyer Says, Jessica Vittorio spends a quick, but impactful 30 minutes covering what the GDPR actually states, provides some background for why this regulation came to fruition, and explains how it affects companies of all sizes.

Why You Should Listen

Quite frankly, if you are interested in becoming a successful entrepreneur with a thriving business – you need to know your sh*t when it comes to the legal sh*t. Not being well versed with the law could potentially harm your company if you aren’t careful, especially as a small business owner. You won’t find many [dare I say any?] lawyers out there who are willing to sit down and explain the nuances of these legal subjects to you…for free. Jessica Vittorio’s podcast is straightforward and very easy to follow. At no more than 40 minutes an episode, Vittorio offers sound advice and teaches listeners about the terms many throw around without truly understanding what they mean. Empower yourself with the knowledge that would otherwise cost you and take some time to hear this young attorney give it to you straight.

Community Patrons

RELATED POSTS

People have opinions about Joshua Baer, chief executive officer of Capital Factory, whether he is deserving of the judgment or not. Baer is best known for his role within the tech, startup and entrepreneur scene in Austin, TX, where he

As our community continues to grow, Launch DFW is on an ongoing mission to introduce you to some of the region’s incredible startups and business innovators. We’ve partnered with Fort Worth-based WeWork ClearFork to spotlight a few of the DFW-based

Background reading:
Comparing Startup Accelerators
Why startups need signals
What is the job of elite universities? Most people would say, after giving you looks for asking such a “stupid” question, that it’s obviously to educate top students.
What if I told you

About LDFW

Inspiring, supporting & empowering the future of tech startups & innovation in North Texas since 2009.